Round braiding machine



June 21, 1932. G. HORN 1,864,249

ROUND BRAIDING MACHINE Filed Dec. 26, 1929 5 Sheets-Sheet l N June 21, 1932. G. HORN D 1,864,249

ROUND BRAIDTNG MACHINE Filed Dec. 26, 1929 5 Siiets-Sheet 2 June 21, 1932. G1 HORN ROUND BRAIDING MACHINE 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Dec. 26, 1929 Patented June 21, 1932 GUIDO HORN, OF WEI SSEN SEE, NEAR BERLIN, :GERMANY' Ronni) 'IBRAIDING MACHINE,

Application filed December 26, 1929, Serial No.

This invention relates to a round braiding machine and consists particularly therein, that a fixed guide path for the track of the inner carriers is provided, being supported by machine elements situated partly inside the path of the outer carriers and partly outside the path of these carriers. The hearing members of the guide path are preferably connected with each other to, for instance, a channel like machine part. Motion to the inner and the outer carriers is preferably imparted by-means of a spokeless ring,

equipped with two gear-rims and which is actuated by means of one of the gear rims and which, moreover, supports the outer carriers. WVith the aid of its other gear-rim the said ring actuates intermediate gear wheels provided at the machine casing, which in turn cause the inner carriers to describe a ciroularpath round the centre of the machine.

In connection herewith the annular machine casing is preferably provided with the groove for the travelling thread-guide levers for reciprocating the threads of the outer carriers in a well known manner across the V Fig. 1,

Figs. 3 and 4 represent, compared with Fig. 2, a somewhat modified embodiment of the invention in two, somewhat larger, part sectional views. v

In the drawings 1 represents a casing of a round braiding machine, 2 a gear wheel 416,635, and in Germany December .21, .1928.

actuated by belt drive, 3 a ring supported upon the machine structure and rendered. rotatable by means of an intermediate layer of balls 4, said ring being provided with a gear rimea at the bottom thereof and adapted to be actuated by the gear wheel 2. This ring 3 supports so-called outer carriers'3'l), as well as lugs 30, which in turn support thread guide levers 5 engaging by means of, corresponding rims 6 (Fig. 2)' a groove 7 provided'in the annular part 1a of the casing. This groove serves for steering ,the thread guides in a known manner. 5a shows an external eyelet only of the extreme end of athread guide lever 5 in one positions, the other parts of this guidelever being omitted, whilst the thread levers 5 in full drawn lines are shown in their other end position in Fig. '2; 8 represents gear wheels meshing with a second gear rim of the ring 3 and rotatably attached to the fixed machine element 1. On the side opposite to ring 3 the gear wheels 8 engage toothed parts of slides 9 of the so-calledinnercan riers 9a. These slides 9 are made torun along a guide 10a, 10?) being supported from different sides by the machinecasing 1 whilst leaving slots 11 between the separate parts of the guide. The manner of supporting'this guide will be further referred to later. '7

Upon actuating the gear wheel 2 the ring 3, supporting the outer carriers 3?), is caused to revolve in a direction round the centre of the machine. The ring 3 imparts a rotary motion to the intermediate wheels 8 and these cause the carriers 9a, to describe a circular path round the centre of the machine in a direction opposite to that of the ring 3 and thus of the outer carriers 3?). During the motion of the carriers 3?) the thread guidesfiare swung in such a manner, that the threads of the outer carriers 35 onc'epattain an end position causing thesethreads to attaln a pos1t1on w1th1n, the surface of a cone the 'generatrices of which are indicated byO O of its end 0- the dotted lines I, Figs. 2 and 4. In the other end position of the thread guide levers 5 the threads of the outer carriers attain the surface of a cone, the generatrices of which are indicated by the dotted line II of Figs. 2 and 3.

The parts 10a of the guide of the inner carriers 9a will now at those points, where the threads of the outer carriers essentially move upon the surface of a cone I, be supported from that side 1?) of the machine casing, which is situated within the path of motion of the outer carriers 36, whilst the parts 106 of this guide path will at those points, where the threads of the outer carriers are essentially situated upon the surface of a cone II,

.- the cones I and II. In other words, the parts 10a of the guide, see Fig. 2 on the left and Fig. 4:, are supported from that side of the machine frame, which in the drawings is situated below the surface of the cone I,

whilst the parts 106 of this guide are supported by such bearing elements, which in the drawings are situated above the surface of the cone II. The essential point in connection herewith is, that the supports of the intermediate wheels 8 between the ring 3 and the slides 9 of the carriers 9a during the time of the lowest position of the thread guide shown in Fig. 2 lie above the surface of the cone II, whilst they should lie below the surface of cone I, as long as the thread guides occupy their highest positions. The ring 3 is provided with gaps 3d (Figs. 2 and 3) at those points, in which the external eyelet of the thread guide has reached its lOWest end position, said gaps forming an extension of tooth gaps of the ring 3 in which the teeth of the intermediate wheels 8 are made to mesh. In these gaps 3d accommodation is provided for the threads of the outer carriers without danger of being damaged by the teeth of the gear wheels 8, when the thread guide is occupying its lowest position. The transfer of the thread guide lever 5 from the position, at which its thread is situated upon the surface of the cone I, to that position, at which the thread is situated upon the surface of the cone II, takes place, as soon as the external eyelet of the thread guide is situated at the interspaces 11 between the parts 1a and 1b.

In Fig. 2 the carriers 36 on the ring 3 are situated in the channel formed by the annular parts 1?) and 10. They are thus made to permanently run in a channel.

In the embodiment as shown in Figs. 3 and 4 the outer carriers 3?) have been attached to the upwardly extending lugs 30. In this case, they are covered only at those points where the holders 1d for the guide path have been provided, whereas at those points, where the guide path is being supported by the parts 1?), they are exposed.

12a and 126 are spools, which may serve for producing braids of a square, hexagona or octagonal cross section by introducing socalled corner running-in threads into the lash formed by the threads of the outer carriers between the cone-surfaces I and II or the intervals between these cone-surfaces and the travelling inner carriers 9a. For this purpose "special guide-channels 13a, 131) have been provided which are supported by the bearing elements lb or 1d of the guide path and so attached thereto between two intermediate wheels 8 that they conduct the threads of their spools into the interior of the machine.

In the Figs. 2 (left) and 4 it has been shown, that a part of the guide path 10 is supported by that side of the machine frame 1 which is placed below in the drawings. This fixed machine frame 1 has been crosshatched for the purpose of characterizing those parts of the machine frame which belong to each other.

A machine in accordance with this invention possesses the advantage, that essentially the whole of the interior of the machine is left free, whereas the revolving parts of the machine have been reduced to a minimum. It has, moreover, been attained thereby, that the guide body is fixed and that parts, revolving in opposite directions, are not required to glide upon each other. The position of the inner carrier is immaterial; this may also be provided outside the guide, if the latter is displaced towards the interior sufiiciently far. Owing to the small number of revolving parts and the inconsiderable mass of the revolving parts the machine runs quite easily. A braking might be effected in a not shown manner immediately upon the ring 3 or also upon the driving wheel 13 or its shaft. A special base plate for the machine is not required. At the groove or channel 1, 1b, 10 feet 14 are provided, which may be utilized as resting points.

In the specific machine illustrated sixteen carriers have been shown, as well as four guide track sections held from without and four guide track sections held from within. A

machine of this description works two over two. Provided that there were only two gliding track sections of double width available, the sixteen carrier machine would produce a square braid of four over four. Each single thread would be alternately placed above and below four counter running carrier threads, whereby the threads of the outer carriers would pass by on either side of the corner running-in threads of the carriers 12a and 12b- 1. In a round braiding machine, a plurality of inner and a plurality of outer carriers, means for causing at least the inner carriers to describe a circular path round the axis of the machine, slides on these inner carriers, a circular guide for these slides, bearing elements for this guide, of which one part supports parts of said guide from the inner side of the path of the outer carriers, another part of the elements supporting other parts of said guide from the outer side of the path of the outer carriers, the bearing elements supported at the inner side of the guide path being disposed on an annular fixed part of the machine leaving free the centre part of the latter of a width not substantially less than the diameter of said guide.

2. In a round braiding machine in accordance with claim 1, the bearing elements of the guide path supporting from the outside being also connected with each other in form of an annular fixed part.

3. In a round braiding machine in accordance with claim 1, the bearing elements of the guide path supporting from the outside being also connected with each other in form of an annular fixed part, thread guiding means for the threads of the outer carriers adapted to swing these threads in such a manner, that they once are situated on one side of the path along which circulate the inner carriers and then again upon the other side of this path, the said annular support of the outer bearing elements of the guide path being provided with a curved groove adapted to move the thread guiding means in the manner stated.

4. In a round braiding machine in accordance with claim 1, a rigid connection of the bearing elements supporting the parts of the guide from within and without, the support for the outer bearing elements being of annular formation.

5. In a round braiding machine in accordance with claim 1, a ring-shaped double gearrim rigidly connected with the outer carriers, intermediate wheels between this gearrim and the slides of the inner carriers, and actuating means for this double gear-rim, which also essentially leave free the centre or middle part of the machine, the one of the two rims serving for driving this rim, whilst the second rim serves for causing the inner carriers to describe a circular path through the medium of the said intermediate wheels.

6. In a round braiding machine, a plurality of inner and a plurality of outer carriers, means for causing at least the inner carriers to describe a circular path round the axis of the machine, slides on the inner carriers, a circular guide for these slides, bearing elements for this guide, of which one part supports parts of said guide from the inner side of the path of the outer carriers another part of the elements supporting other parts of said guide from the outer side of the path of the outer carriers, a fixed support of the guide being a circular guide for these inner carriers,

bearing elements for this guide of which one part supports parts of said guide from the inner side of the path of the outer carriers, another part of the elements supporting other parts of said guide from the outer side of the path of the outer carriers, a bearingelement supporting from the inside as well as a bearing element supporting from the outside, being provided with a special carrier and a guiding device for the thread of this carrier, this device being adapted to cause the thread to pass through the support of the spool between an inner carrier and the thread of an outer carrier.

8. In a round braiding machine, a spokeless geared ring of large diameter leaving the inner part of the machine free and being held by the outer parts of the machine, means adapted to actuate this geared ring by means of an actuating device also essentially leaving free the inner part of the geared ring, a number of carriers adapted to describe a circular path round the centre of the machine and intermediate elements adapted to transfer independent from the said actuating device the motion of the geared ring to the said carriers.

9. In a round braiding machine in accordance with claim 8, on the geared ring two geared rims, one of which is adapted to be actuated by a source of power, whilst the second geared rim is adapted to actuate the circulating carriers through the medium of the intermediate elements which are designed as gear wheels.

10. In a round braiding machine, a plurality of inner and a plurality of outer carriers, means for causing at least the inner carriers. to describe a circular path around the axis of the machine, slides on the inner carriers, a circular guide for said slides, bearing elements for said guide which support parts of said guide from the inner side of the path of the outer carriers and also sup port other parts of said guide from the outer side of the path of the outer carriers, the bearing elements supporting from the inner side of the guide path and disposed on an annular fixed part of the machine, free of machine parts at itscentre.

11. In a round braiding machine, a spokeless geared ring of large diameter leaving the inner part of the machine free and being held by the outer parts of the machine, means adapted to actuate this geared ring by means of an actuating device also essentially leaving free the inner part of the geared ring, a

number of carriers adapted to describe a circular path round the center of the machine and intermediate gear Wheels disposed between said ring and said carriers and adapted to transfer the motion of the geared ring immediately to the said carriers.

In testimony whereof I afiiX my signature.

GUIDO HORN. 

